Diet and Fitness Tips Backed by Science!

Improving your fitness level, making bigger gains in the gym, or losing weight all comes down to one simple – yet not easy – strategy. The title may be a bit misleading because this “secret” is not really a secret at all. It’s something we all have and use every single day.

Your Brain!

The key to making progress in the gym is first getting your mind right. Mindset is everything in the gym. Make sense? You might be a little confused at this point, but let me explain.

The difference between you and the guy or girl that has the body you want is in their mindset. They have the determination, hunger and focus to set specific goals and achieve them systematically.

It’s not your genetics, how much muscle you have, or how high-end your equipment is. It’s all about getting your mind right through goal setting and developing an absolute F-You attitude to anyone who laughs at you, puts you down, tells you it can’t be done, or in any way hinders your progress.

The power of training your mind before you start training your body is such an undervalued strategy for achieving success.

If you want to make progress toward achieving your fitness goals, you need to have the mindset that you are the hardest working person in the gym…period. Other people may be in better shape, lift more, run faster, or jump higher – but that does NOT mean you can’t work harder than them!

Effort comes from your desire and determination to be the best you can be. Your mindset dictates your effort level. If you train your mind to believe that you will be the hardest worker in the room every time you step into the gym, you better believe that progress will soon follow. This goes for whatever you’re chasing: Increased muscle mass, fat loss, improved cardiovascular health, etc.

Once you’ve trained your mind to believe you can do it, your effort in the gym will naturally increase, and results will soon follow. But how do you go about improving your mindset so you can start reaping the rewards?

Here are several useful tips that will help you get started:

Surround yourself with like-minded people that are at least as determined as you are. Even more importantly, get the negative people out of your life. These people will hold you back.

YouTube is an excellent resource for finding motivation to help you get going and stay going at a high level. Search YouTube for Greg Plitt, Les Brown and Eric Thomas. They will help shape your mindset and get you realizing that you can do it! Watch the video below and others like it everyday until you start believing in yourself and your dreams.

Meditate. Try to make it a daily habit. Just 15 to 30 minutes a day can make a huge difference. It’s a stress reliever and helps to clear a cluttered mind.

Set small goals rather than exclusively setting big, long-term goals. For example, try to squat 10 lbs. more than you did the week before, or do a few extra reps. Small, simple goals give you instant gratification that can help fuel your workouts and keep you going.

Eat right. The food you eat not only has an effect on your appearance and energy levels, but it also affects your brain. Try eating no junk food or processed foods for one week and see how you feel. I bet you have more energy, feel less depressed and just flat-out feel better.

Challenge yourself. You will find you’re so much more capable than you ever thought. This holds true for anything in life, not just fitness.

When you’re in the right mindset, it’s honestly easy to achieve fitness goals. Mental fitness – or having the right mindset – is far more of a challenge to achieve compared to the physical part of lifting weights, running, etc.

You burn out mentally before you burn out physically.

Once you learn the mental side of fitness and training, it allows you to believe in yourself and achieve great things.